The present invention concerns a method and a system for monitoring traffic revenue flows for Communications Companies using an Information Technology system.
Communication Companies encounter financial revenue leakages due to problems in building and operation of more and more complex information technology systems and network components. Discrepancies in the billing process may derive either from fraudulent activity, from human errors in operations or from technical errors in hardware and software.
Document WO 04/070 555 discloses a system and method for determining billing discrepancies within a communication system. In this system, operation data collected within the communication system are compared to billed data. Documents WO 03/096661 and DE 100 11 986 describe call generation systems that remotely operate wireless devices for testing and accounting purpose. These call generation systems may enable the separation of the SIM card and the wireless device.
Present methods for detecting revenue leakages or technical problems by the mean of call generation does not provide any structured way to design optimal Call Campaigns maximizing the level of discovery.
In present discrepancy detection systems, the way of collecting operation data can be qualified as intrusive since it requires inserting data collection mechanisms within the monitored Information Technology systems and communications networks of the Communications Company.
In present discrepancy detection systems, comparisons are usually performed at an aggregated level (i.e. by comparing total duration of transaction, total number of Transactions or total amount of a specific type of Transactions flowing between two specific systems during a specific time slot); this aggregation limits the accuracy of revenue leakages detection because of “flow effects” that hide the small discrepancies looked for.
Present discrepancy detection systems are not able to reconcile the billed data produced by the Communications Companies with the logs produced by the call generation systems, for the complex billing schemes implemented by the Communication Companies that sometimes lead to multiple Invoice Lines for one single Transaction.